30 U.S.C. § 208 — Permits to take coal for local domestic needs without royalty payments; corporation exclusion; area to municipalities for household use without profit

submitted 106 years ago by ch. 85 to r/title-30-MINERAL-LANDS-AND-MINING · 272 words · no verdicts yet

in plain englishAI-generated · not legal advice

This law lets the Secretary of the Interior issue small, royalty-free permits to mine coal from public land for local household use. Individuals and municipalities can get these permits, but for-profit corporations cannot.

This section is one continuous provision. To meet strictly local fuel needs, the Secretary of the Interior may issue limited licenses or permits letting individuals, or groups of individuals, prospect for, mine, and take coal from public lands for their own use — not to sell — without paying a royalty for the coal or for using the land. The Secretary sets the conditions in advance to protect the public interest. This privilege does not extend to corporations generally. Municipal corporations get a special exception, though. The Secretary can give a municipality a limited license covering land based on its population: up to 320 acres for a municipality under 100,000 people; up to 1,280 acres for one between 100,000 and 150,000 people; and up to 2,560 acres for one with 150,000 or more people. The land must be in the same state as the municipality. The condition is that the municipality must mine the coal under proper conditions and give it to its own residents for household use without making a profit. A closing proviso makes clear that holding a lease under sections 181, 201, and 202 through 207 of this title does not stop someone from also holding land, or running a mine, under one of these limited licenses.

the actual law source: uscode.house.gov ↗public domain

In order to provide for the supply of strictly local domestic needs for fuel, the Secretary of the Interior may, under such rules and regulations as he may prescribe in advance, issue limited licenses or permits to individuals or associations of individuals to prospect for, mine, and take for their use but not for sale, coal from the public lands without payment of royalty for the coal mined or the land occupied, on such conditions not inconsistent with this chapter as in his opinion will safeguard the public interests. This privilege shall not extend to any corporations. In the case of municipal corporations the Secretary of the Interior may issue such limited license or permit, for not to exceed three hundred and twenty acres for a municipality of less than one hundred thousand population, and not to exceed one thousand two hundred and eighty acres for a municipality of not less than one hundred thousand and not more than one hundred and fifty thousand population; and not to exceed two thousand five hundred and sixty acres for a municipality of one hundred and fifty thousand population or more, the land to be selected within the State wherein the municipal applicant may be located, upon condition that such municipal corporations will mine the coal therein under proper conditions and dispose of the same without profit to residents of such municipality for household use: Provided, That the acquisition or holding of a lease under sections 181, 201, and 202 to 207 of this title shall be no bar to the holding of such tract or operation of such mine under said limited license.

Source credit: (Feb. 25, 1920, ch. 85, § 8, 41 Stat. 440.)

history & why it existsrecord from the source credit

1920Enacted · Act of Feb. 25, 1920, ch. 85 · 41 Stat. 440

A history note hasn’t been published yet. The record shows enactment by ch. 85 on 1920-02-25.

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